Living Abroad: Choosing a Country That's Best For You
Experienced long-term traveler, volunteer, expatriate, and a Living Abroad Contributing Editor Volker Poelzl—whose work has involved researching comprehensive global and country-by-country expatriate resource guides for Transitions Abroad—describes the lure of life overseas for the estimated 6.3+ million Americans who have already decided to take the plunge. We provide our picks for the top twelve countries, in our estimation, for those contemplating a new life in another country.

Columns providing tips and answers to your essential questions on living abroad and expatriate issues, include:

What it Takes to Live and Work Abroad
Celeste Heiter, a long-time expatriate in Japan and freelance author, offers her own inside tips and a test to determine your readiness for a successful transition abroad.

Could You Live Abroad?
John P. Seely describes why living abroad is not for everyone. Careful preparation and self-knowledge is necessary in order to have a successful expatriate experience.

The Anxiety of Otherness: Expatriate Life Linda Lappin's Transitions Abroad 2009 Expatriate Writing Contest winning essay reflects upon her experience in a village in the region of Tuscia, Italy as an example of some of the inherently existential issues involved in living abroad.

Finding a Flat Overseas
Nicholas Gill highlights the on-line international rental resources and websites for expatriates to aid you in what is one of the most challenging aspects of moving overseas.

Home Exchanges: A Cheap Way to Live Abroad
Catherine Price provides inside tips on how to go about swapping your home for one overseas. Home exchanges are one of the cheapest ways allowing for extended living abroad.

Real Estate in Latin America
Tim Leffel provides insight into some of reasons real estate in Latin America is in such great demand for Americans wishing to live abroad. He describes and provides resources on how best to go about researching a place to live in the region, while taking your budget into consideration.

Living in Bangkok by Nathan Edgerton
...Bangkok is the place to be if you want to live in one of Southeast Asia's most modern and exciting cities. If Southeast Asia has a city that doesn't sleep, this is it. With gentle and friendly people who still like to stay up late and food that by itself keeps the quality-of-life high, Bangkok is a fun place to stay with a lot to do....

An Expat’s Budget in Beach Town Cambodia by Brett Dvoretz
...Among the many of the other appeals of living in Cambodia, and one of its biggest draws, was the low cost of living... Here, with relatively little work, I can afford to eat, buy, and engage in all the activities I desire...

Living in Switzerland
Catherine Richards Golini describes the realities of living abroad in Switzerland and provides key resources for prospective expatriates.

Moving to the U.K.
Relocation expert Jo-Anne Woodward offers tips on moving to the U.K., inluding obtaining a visa, renting a home, finding a job, receiving health care, and other living considerations.

Living Aboad in Mexico: The Expat Phenomenon
Rachel Hartman describes why so many expats come to live in Mexico, why they stay, and offers individual examples along her own advice on basic Mexican cultural dos and dont's.

Working and Networking in Italy
Emma Bird provides inside tips on finding work in Italy. In Italy networking for a job can be as important as your credentials, which as an English speaker should not be underestimated, reports an expatriate who has worked as an English teacher, a journalist, and a freelancer. Emma reviews the major books on the subject for those intent on Moving, Working, and Living in Italy.

Living in Rome for the Long Term
Expatriate Martha Miller describes how the life she and her husband led as expatriates in the entrancing Trastevere neighborhood of Rome.

Jules Maidoff: An American Expatriate Artist in Italy and Founder of SACI in Florence Transitions Abroad engages Jules Maidoff in a discussion of his background as a painter in New York, his subsequent move to Italy, and the story of his creation of an art school in Florence. Jules provides a unique perspective as a highly successful expatriate happily living abroad in Italy, where he is so immersed in Italian and European cultural life that he has no plans to ever leave.

Living and Working in Zagreb, Croatia
Nicholas J. Klenske writes that the city needs some unraveling to reveal "a café culture rivaling Paris, the cosmopolitan vibe of Prague, and a nightlife akin to Madrid."

Living Abroad in Italy
John Moretti, who found work and lived in Italy as a journalist for four years after falling in love with the country and its people, describes the many colorful aspects of living in the diverse country of Italy—which is composed of regions with their own unique cultural identity and aesthetic allure. Moretti offers step-by-step advice and details on the complex cultural history, arts, visas, long-term housing, language and education, employment options, moving considerations including advice on a fact-finding trip, health, finances, communications, geography, and much more in a highly readable and engaging style which leaves the reader wishing to make the move today!

Living Abroad in Belize
Ian Sluder, who was fascinated by this relatively undiscovered Central American country for years, has been living and exploring the land since 1991. He writes: "My goal is to provide you with information that will help you decide if Belize is for you, and if so, what options you will have in the country. This is not a guide to every aspect of daily living in Belize, because that would take many thousands of pages, but a guide to making your first decisions about living in Belize as a retiree, part-time resident, full-time businessperson, employee, or student, or simply someone who has an abiding fascination for Belize.